An annual event of great significance was held recently in Sitka. Hosted by Alaska Airlines, Prom Princess is a program that brings volunteers from Alaska and the Pacific Northwest to Mt. Edgecumbe High School to provide prom dresses, tuxedos and beauty makeovers to students there who otherwise wouldn't be able to attend their prom. Mt. Edgecumbe is a boarding school so these kids don't have the support of their families as most other high school students would. It's a wonderful heartfelt event that is now in its fifth year and one of the major movers behind this event was honored for all he has done for the program. Bernie Gurule, the Academic Principal of Mt Edgecumbe High School, gave us the short version.

"Ivy Lanthier is our dorm contractor and he's the one who really made this thing spring up into being the bigger event with the princess situation, that the hair the dresses, all of that stuff, and we owe him a great debt of gratitude. Ivy really likes the kids, they really like him, so when I look at the success of it now and how it's grown in a few years, I think of Ivy Lanthier, and I appreciate that and I'd like people to know that."

Terri Bogren, the creator and Queen of the Prom Princess Program, presented Mr. Lanthier with a token of their appreciation. "I just want to say thank you very much for all that you've done for us all the five years and the support that you've given us and all of our teams and to make this a wonderful experience for everybody. The students and the staff and all the volunteers are very grateful and thank you. So here's your own Tiara."

Mr. Lanthier then responded with what he felt was an important point concerning what it all meant to the students. "I was telling this gentleman here today that the biggest thing about prom might be something you don't realize, but because all of you people show up on this one day, and people from all over that they don't know and you help out. All the sudden they (the students) realize that they're really special because you're here."